Two-time Olympic champion Christian Taylor announced he ruptured his Achilles and will miss the Tokyo Olympics. Taylor is the best triple jumper of his generation and has a total of four World Championships along with his Olympic titles. This is a huge hit to Team USA and USATF.
Taylor jumped 17.81 meters (58’5″) to capture gold in the London games. He followed that up with a 17.86-meter leap in 2016 in Rio. While he is known for his triple jump prowess, there was a time when Taylor was a multi-event athlete. In addition to triple, Taylor also competed in the long jump for many years and even on the track. His 400m PR of 45.07 was good enough to earn him a spot on the USA World Relay 4x400m relay team. That team won gold in 2014.
Taylor ruptured his Achilles while competing last Wednesday while in the Czech Republic.
Taylor shared an inspirational message on his Twitter.
I strive to lead, inspire, motivate, encourage, challenge, and entertain. You all have shown me that my career has been more than merely jumping in a sandbox and for that I dry my eyes and push forward. My Olympic dream has been lost but my purpose remains. Thank YOU for that. pic.twitter.com/DkuDI193qw
— Christian Taylor (@Taylored2jump) May 24, 2021
At 30 years old, Taylor potentially has a long career ahead of him. The longevity and consistency on the international stage have spanned over a decade at this point. He is one of the sports greatest and hopefully will be able to return to the field and skip, hop, and jump his way onto a podium soon.
